Monday, November 2, 2009

Rosenblum Cellars, like many wineries in California at the time, was founded by passionate wine lovers who had established themselves in frields far away from viticulture and oenology. Ken Rosenblum, an established veterinarian, and his wife Kathy founded Rosenblum Cellars in 1978. Since then, Ken has headed up the winemaking and has elevated his wines to the point that Rosenblum Cellars is now regarded as a "Mecca for Zin-fanatics". Besides their famous Zinfandels, Rosenblum focuses primarily on varietals native to the Rhone.

The winery is located in Alameda County which obviously is not in the traditional wine areas of Napa or Sonoma counties (although they do have a tasting room in Napa, smart idea!).

This is a very good Petite Sirah. Its appearance was extermely dense and viscous. The aromas exploded with lush blackberry and bitter chocolate. On the palate, this robust wine exuded very dry, big blackberry, strawberry and currant with spice and green vegitation in the backdround. There was a healthy amount of heat from alcohol present, but it was not enough to really take anything away from this fun wine.

Overall, this was a very good representation of what Petite Sirah can be. It would pair wonderfully with any red meat, especially rack of lamb or sirloin. I would put this wine at around 91 points and once you take into account the price point, you quickly realize what this is a terrific value!

This wine is available at most NH Liquor stores, including the one behind the Nashua Mall off of Exit 6.